NEW DELHI: If the 2009 elections were the tipping point in RIL-Congress relations, 2010 was when the old friendship started seriously unraveling. What could have been a temporary cooling off turned into something colder as Congress strategists started seeing a different RIL design - in the person of 58-year-old Parimal Nathwani, group president (corporate affairs and projects), RIL, a native of Gujarat, Rajya Sabha MP from Jharkhand, VP of Gujarat Cricket Association and, as Congress sees him, RIL's plenipotentiary to Modi.

Nathwani's prominence in managing RIL's corporate affairs - for large companies this remit includes liaising with the political establishment - started around the time the Niira Radia tapes produced a flurry of mostly unflattering headlines on the former head of Vaishnavi Corporate Communications. A key Congress strategist described why Nathwani became the lightning rod for Congress's increasing disaffection with RIL. "Reliance's orientation, right from the time of Dhirubhai was Congress...Dhirubhai was credited with helping Indira come back to power... the company and its promoters were always seen to be close to the Congress." "But Parimal changed all that," this strategist said.

According to him and other senior Congress leaders, the party saw Nathwani as helping Modi at a difficult time for the Gujarat chief minister. These Congress leaders said the Reliance official was a key adviser to Modi when legal issues stemming from a court monitored investigation into Gujarat riots were looming large. Congress perceptions about RIL-BJP close relations grew stronger and stronger.

"We understand businessmen have many friends and RIL was never anti-BJP but it's another thing when you are sharing a dais with someone and proclaiming him to be the future of the country," - a Congress leader said, explaining how evidence of Modi-Ambani closeness had been piling up within a year of Congress coming back to power.

Nathwani initially agreed to respond to ET's questions but subsequently did not reply to the queries. He said one of Congress's top functionaries had summoned an Ambani aide and told the latter "to keep Nathwani in check". This functionary, according to the Congress leader, told the Ambani aide, "Dhanda karna hai ki nahin? (Do you want to do business or not?)". The message was clear.

Nathwani kept a low profile for sometime after that, the Congress leader said. "But things changed again". In this list of evidence, as Congress saw it, was Nathwani's re-election to the Rajya Sabha, which "was supported by BJP in Jharkhand". A senior BJP leader confirmed this. He said Modi's key aide Amit Shah played a prominent role in getting Nathwani re-elected. Of the 24 signatures Nathwani's nomination required, 18 were from BJP legislators.

Oil Minister Changes

Nathwani leading RIL's charm offensive with Modi, as Congress saw it, pretty much coincided with a ministerial portfolio reshuffle that demonstrated, everyone who spoke to ET for this story said, a real turn in Congress-RIL relationship. In January 2011, Murli Deora, who had replaced Manishankar Aiyar as petroleum minister in UPA's first term, was himself replaced by Jaipal Reddy.

This was followed by staffing and policy changes. S Sundareshan, petroleum secretary under Deora, was replaced by GS Chatutvedi. Then, audit of RIL's trophy oil fields in the Krishna Godavri region gathered force. Government officials familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition they not be identified told ET RIL's RIL "access to policymakers was reduced".

An official said, "RIL executives had enjoyed unfettered access to the oil ministry...but during Reddy's time, those executives needed an appointment to see the minister or the secretary". Even for topmost RIL executives like PMS Prasad getting an appointment became difficult, this official said, adding that junior officials started taking cues from their bosses.

The Other Man from RIL

If Nathwani was Ambani's key aide for relationship management with BJP, Mahendra Nahata, Ambani's business partner in his 4G telecom venture, was, according to regional party leader, RIL's "emissary" to state-level satraps. "Nahata has excellent relations with Mayawati, Mulayam and Nitish," this politician said. He added Nahata may well play a role if and when BJP is in ally-hunting mode.

Congress leaders see other demonstrations of Ambani's "pro-Modi stance". They complain about "media outfits financed by Ambani taking an aggressively pro-Modi stand". Mukesh's relationship with Modi is different because, as a Congress leader argued, "the RIL chief is actively supporting Modi's bid for PM". "Many business leaders praise Modi, but Ambani is helping him substantively", this leader said. "And it especially doesn't help when this election is being viewed as Modi vs Rahul."